03/21/2012

So, Is It Part Of A Set? - Jolly Nigger Money Bank

Note: I mean no offence by the terms Black or Nigger. I am simply seeking to place the object in its historical context. It is my understanding that black is currently an accepted terminology, while 'jolly nigger' is simply the wording used to market and sell the money bank and thus the correct term to describe the bank itself.

Imagine, you are a child living in the late 1800s. Your family is not poor, but you father thinks it is important for you to understand that money doesn't just grow on trees. Recently he gave you a money bank, in the shape of a 'Jolly Nigger', to save your coins in. Usually, when you have a spare penny you go to the shops and buy some lollies, but Father tells you that if you give your money to the bank to look after, one day you might have enough for a pretty new dolly, or even a new dress!

When I took this 'Jolly Nigger Money Bank' to show the children, I was really surprised by their reaction. They live in a world where even 'Ba Ba Black Sheep' has become 'Ba Ba Black, White and Rainbow Sheep', and they simply assumed that the Jolly Nigger was one of a set. They asked how many races they made, whether there were Europeans and Chinese and Japanese money banks too. Their reaction to the word nigger was also very surprising. Some were, as I imagined they would be, shocked and surprised at such a racist title for the bank, but several actually had to ask what nigger meant, never having heard the word before. I was really surprised but pleased that so many didn't know what the word meant. The children really know very little about racism, especially towards black Americans, and were intrigued to learn more.

The Jolly Nigger Money Bank is one of a wide range of caricatures depicting black men and women. To the children, such caricatures are interesting, surprising, and slightly horrifying, yet in the past they were very common. Many of the famous 'nigger' caricatures have come from 'blackface' theatre, a type of theatre where white people used charcoal or burned cork to blacken their faces and assumed the character of a black person. These characters were not based on factual portrayals of black people though, they were caricatures themselves. Usually, the 'blackface' actor assumed the role of a specific stereotyped black person. These stereotypes have names of their own like Mammy, Coon, Jim Crow, Buck, Uncle Tom, Sambo, Pickaninny, Wench and Mulatto and although the character may not assume the stereotyped name, people of the time could recognise the type of black person by their appearance and portrayal. We looked at another type of charicature, the Pickaninny, with the book '10 Little Nigger Boys' (if you would like to read about this, click here).

The stereotypes which were seen on stage in theatres were so recognisable that they began to be featured in other ways. One of the most commonly used stereotypes was Mammy, who was portrayed as a smiling, cheerful, portly black woman wearing an apron, big gold earrings, and (usually) with her head wrapped in a scarf. She was used to advertise things used in cooking and cleaning, like flour and soap, and even today she is apparently seen on some packets of pancake mix in America! Then, and now, she was the most common portrayal of female slaves, showing them as happy and a source of earthy wisdom. She loved the white family she served, and in their own way, white society loved her too. Unfortunately, she was far from an accurate portrayal of life for slave women. As the name of the bank implies, the stereotype the money bank I showed the children uses is that of a 'jolly nigger'. It has the characteristic big, white eyes, wide lips and smiling mouth which is so common to the 'coon', but some also find think the bank with its vacant stare, wide open mouth and the way it devours money references the brute or buck stereotypes, selfish, menacing and even cruel. Whether you see the bank as a friendly face, or a menacing one, it was designed to teach children to be careful with their money, at the same time as reinforcing the often derogatory stereotypes which were applied to black people. This bank is probably a reproduction and these classic money banks are being produced today.

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So, Is It Part Of A Set? - Jolly Nigger Money Bank

Note: I mean no offence by the terms Black or Nigger. I am simply seeking to place the object in its historical context. It is my understanding that black is currently an accepted terminology, while 'jolly nigger' is simply the wording used to market and sell the money bank and thus the correct term to describe the bank itself.

Imagine, you are a child living in the late 1800s. Your family is not poor, but you father thinks it is important for you to understand that money doesn't just grow on trees. Recently he gave you a money bank, in the shape of a 'Jolly Nigger', to save your coins in. Usually, when you have a spare penny you go to the shops and buy some lollies, but Father tells you that if you give your money to the bank to look after, one day you might have enough for a pretty new dolly, or even a new dress!